For a change, a good cup of coffee would be nice. It does take some time and some energy to find a great cup of gourmet coffee these days. If you do know of a perfect coffee shop, you are one of the lucky ones. But, did you know that you can basically make a nice cup of coffee on your own from home?
Free Shipping on Keurig Brewers

Here are 7 simple steps that you can take to produce the perfect cup of coffee every time.

Start with quality. One of the most critical aspects of coffee drinking is the grade of the coffee that you start off with. If you have a favorite flavor, then purchase whole beans in that flavor. If you can do this, it will allow you to get the most fresh coffee accessible.

Grind away. Purchase a quality coffee grinder. Some of the best grinders available today are easy to use and easy to clean up. By grinding your own coffee beans, you’ll be able to only grind what you need, meaning that you will have complete freshness in your coffee.

Store It Right And Tight. It is very fundamental to store your coffee tightly. Air oxidizes the coffee and can make it to get bitter quickly. Metal canisters can also enable a metal taste to get into the coffee, making it taste bad.

The top solution is for a plastic or ceramic air tight container for your coffee and coffee beans. Also, store it at room temperature because the moisture in the fridge or freezer can make it go bad faster.

Getting To The Coffee

The Maker. The coffee maker that you use is also critical. No matter what style that you go with, you can get a good cup of coffee out of it if you take the essential steps to keeping it fresh.

For example, you should insure that the coffee maker is kept clean after each use. In fact, you’ll need to make sure that you detail clean it, with the assistance of vinegar, every so often as well. Your preferences will ultimately determine which style of coffee maker you will use. Make sure that it uses a permanent filter in it.

Even In The Water. Even the water that you use is central to the quality of the coffee you will get from it. It is essential that you use water that is free from chlorine and minerals.

Often, using bottled water rather than tap water will augment the quality of the coffee. Also, keep the water nice and hot. A good temperature for the water is about 200 degrees Fahrenheit.

Supply The Right Amount. It is also central for you to use the right quantity of coffee beans and coffee grounds in the maker. Too many and you will have a very strong cup of coffee and too few will make it to be too weak. Follow the directions provided by the coffee producer for the best cup of coffee.

Lastly and probably the most vital aspect of getting a great cup of gourmet coffee is to make sure to enjoy your coffee when it is hot and fresh. Most restaurants are told to keep coffee for less than thirty minutes, but at home, the best coffee is the coffee that hasn’t sat for more than twenty minutes.

This article by Mark Ramos gives us some insight into coffee history. Did Starbucks just happen along at the right time?

Free Shipping on 4 boxes of K-Cups

How Did Starbucks Get So Famous?

By Mark Ramos

Almost everyone is familiar with the popular coffee company Starbucks, but do you ever wonder when this brand began? Starbucks is one of the most famous coffee companies in the world, and here is how they started their journey to international fame.

And here is how the humble origin of Starbucks began…

Nowadays, Seattle is seen as the coffee mecca of the United States, and many other popular gourmet coffee brands have come from this city. Starbucks began in 1971 where the first Starbucks was opened at the oldest farmer’s market in the United States, the Pike Place Market in Seattle. The name Starbucks came from a character in Moby Dick, and we are all more than familiar with their mermaid logo, which they say hails from a Norse woodcut.

Initially, Starbucks was a local coffee roaster until Howard Schultz became a part of the company in 1982 to develop their marketing strategy. Schultz then took a trip to Italy where he was inspired by the Italian coffee culture, and he pitched his new ideas to the founders of Starbucks. Starbucks then opened their first coffee bar in 1985, which was called Il Giornale, due to their Italian influence. Needless to say, it was a definite success from the get-go.

By the time that 1987 rolled around, Schultz joined with new investors to purchase Starbucks and open franchises in Chicago and Vancouver. 17 more stores opened within that year alone. There were 165 Starbucks coffee shops in 1992, which was when the company became public with stocks available through NASDAQ. Starbucks introduced their first European location in Zürich, Switzerland, in March 2001. Starbucks is now located in 30 countries worldwide, and they number at over 9000 cafés.

Starbucks hopes to create a positive outcome in the coffee world by donating to charities, yet many people have criticized them because of the amount of waste they create each year with the millions of paper coffee cups they serve. The Starbucks Foundation was introduced in 1997 to fund programs for literacy in Canada and the United States, and they continue to provide support by giving to coffee communities, nurturing young leaders, offering access to clean water, and promoting better education in China. They have also taken the opportunity to set up the C.O.A.S.T. fund to offer assistance to rebuild the Gulf Coast after the devastation by hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

In response to the criticism against Starbucks in the waste that they create, Starbucks has made moves to reduce the amount of waste that their cafés generate by recycling. This is a very important matter to Starbucks and Starbucks customers, and they have taken into consideration all of the criticism they received about recycling their paper coffee cups. They have made the goal by 2015 to have recycling available in all store locations to collect waste and also serve espresso drinks in reusable cups for 25% of their beverages sold. This is quite a lofty goal, and we can only wish Starbucks the best in their future endeavors…

Mark Ramos is a coffee geek. For a great selection in all things coffee, espresso machines and BUNN coffee makers, check out The Coffee Bump.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mark_Ramos
http://EzineArticles.com/?How-Did-Starbucks-Get-So-Famous?&id=4988813

>Cuisinart now has a Single Cup Brewer that uses K-Cups!

The Good Stuff

• The price is right at less than $200 (for Cuisinart this is a good price).
• Cuisinart offers a 3-year warranty. This is better than the Keurig 1-year warranty.
• Has a wider range of brew sizes than Keurig’s best selling B-70.
• Of course, the wide assortment of K-cups is a huge plus… there is a perfect choice for every coffee or tea drinker.
• It comes with its own reusable K-cup so you can save lots of money with your own favorite coffee grind - No Extra Charge

The major complaint is that the water pump fails. This has been reported by several buyers on the Amazon.com website. The positive comments outweigh the negative by 2-to-1, and with a 3-year warranty, I don’t think it’s much of a gamble to try, especially with the name of Cuisinart standing behind this single serve coffee maker.

Here are a few of the satisfied customer reviews:

1. So far, this one looks like a real winner. It is the quietest single-serve brewer I have ever used. It has an extra-large water tank and, get this, all parts of this coffee maker that touch water are BPA-free! The machine is rock solid and feels like a high-quality product. The 3-year warranty is the icing on the cake.
2. Have had the SS-700 for about 3 weeks now and it’s great! No problems with pump issues (so far) that others have described, but glad to have the 3 year warranty just in case. Coffee comes out nice and hot and the variety of K-Cups is great– as the only coffee drinker in the house, I no longer have to drink a whole pot of the same kind. The My K-Cup is fantastic as well and works perfectly with a few modifications as suggested in other reviews: first, insert a used K-Cup back in the holder and punch a 2nd hole in the bottom; then, take off the foil top, remove the coffee and filter, and cut off the top rim; then place the metal filter of the My K-Cup inside the plastic K-Cup. Also, roll down slightly the rubber gasket on the upper needle for a better seal. Works great and have rarely had a cup that overflows or has coffee grounds in it. The large water tank is great too– actually can’t imagine having one much smaller since I seem to refill it a lot as it is. Only challenge so far is the “travel mug” setting; nice to have, but the My K-Cup doesn’t seem to pack in enough coffee for that much volume. Regular K-Cups have been fine so far on both the 8 and 10 oz. settings. Haven’t yet tried the “travel mug” K-Cups, maybe those would do the trick. Very satisfied with the purchase.
3. Love this coffee maker! After several years of struggling with my Tassimo machine warranty issues and the difficulty of finding T-discs in my area, I decided to make the switch to a K-cup brewer. After reading many reviews, I decided to go with this Cuisinart model because of the 3 year warranty vs. the 1 year warranty of the Keurig brewers. And I am so pleased with this machine. Every cup of coffee has been perfect. Of course you have to experiment with which brand, flavor & strength of coffees you like, but what a luxury that is after having such a limited selection of T-discs before. My favorite feature of this machine is the iced coffee setting!! Now I can brew a quick serving of iced coffee without any hassle. You won’t be sorry if you go with this brewer. My advice is to spend the extra few dollars and go for this one!

This seems to be a no-brainer. Get your favorite coffee drinking college student a Keurig coffee maker.

Here’s why:

• No preparation needed
• No cleanup needed
• Great coffee taste is equal to their favorite coffee shop brew
• Single cup production
• About 1/6th the cost per cup of coffee shop single serving

What you DON’T need:

• A kitchen with cleaning capabilities – no prep or cleanup necessary
• Coffee grinder – k-cups come ready to brew
• Measuring tools – each k-cup is perfectly prepared and ready to use
• Coffee making knowledge or recipes – see above
• Time – each cup is ready in less than a minute

Students of all ages are drinking coffee these days, and most of them don’t settle for Folgers, if you know what I mean.

A Keurig single serve coffee maker is the perfect gift for a college coffee drinking student. It will save them money and time. It is so convenient that there is absolutely no way to mess up a cup of coffee.

They will probably still go to their favorite coffee shop to hang out and/or study in the evening, but for that first cup of coffee as they dash out the door for class… you can’t beat a Keurig coffee maker with k-cups.

You may be familiar with the term “fair trade coffee”.

What happens with fair trade is that the workers get paid a decent wage in order to be able to support their families.

Land Of A Thousand Hills coffee has a tagline/motto – “Drink Coffee, Do Good” – and they are “putting their money where their mouth is.”
Their commitment is impressive, as is their energy.

You can visit their website at www.drinkcoffeedogood.com and see more about their mission, as well as help out by purchasing coffee, or even making a monetary donation to help the cause. But, at the very least, try the coffee. It is excellent. And as you can see from the video, it is all hand picked and processed. No machines, no sweat-shop labor.

Here is the latest video from Land Of A Thousand Hills about their recent mission trips to Rawanda. They are truly making a difference in the world, “one cup at a time.”

Visit Bukonya! (6 minutes – Full Version) from Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee on Vimeo.